Media Release

Wednesday, 5 June 2013

Mayor’s Claim of Support for Compact City Questioned

Mayor Len Brown’s claim that the overarching view is that Aucklanders support his compact city is highly questionable according to Councillor Dick Quax.

“I don’t see how the mayor can come to this conclusion based on the fact that the submissions to the draft Unitary Plan only closed late on Friday afternoon.”

“All the Unitary Plan meetings that I attended showed a preference for the continuation of suburban type development with high density living confined to the Auckland CBD and other metropolitan centres such as Manukau, Takapuna, and Henderson. Just a handful supported 56 per cent of the city being upzoned.”

“The mayor has been gilding the lily when he claims that there is support for his compact city because he is basing that on the 83 percent cent of submitters to the Auckland Plan who stated that they support the compact city. What he does not reveal is that just 274 submitters mentioned the compact city.”

“When one considers that there a one and a half million people living in Auckland and have a stake in the city to claim a mandate based on 274 submissions is absurd.”

Nevertheless, Cr Quax says he is pleased that the mayor is now having second thoughts around the timetable of the Plan’s notification and the scale and bulk in the proposed Mixed Housing Zone and Terrace and Apartment Buildings Zone.

“However, I note the mayor stated that “we will be making changes were we think it is appropriate”, which indicates that the mayor still believes in his top down decision making model which has promoted all the way through the process.”

Ends

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